Accuray Incorporated (Nasdaq: ARAY), a global leader in the field of radiosurgery, announced today that the first patients in India have been treated using CyberKnife radiosurgery. The CyberKnife System, which is located at the Apollo Specialty Cancer Hospital in Chennai, India, treated six patients in its first week of operation, with eight more patients in the treatment planning process being readied for treatment.

"Our new CyberKnife System allows us to deliver highly precise radiosurgical treatments to patients with tumors throughout the body," said Prathap C. Reddy, M.D., executive chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group. "We are very glad to have begun treating patients and look forward to witnessing the benefits that the System offers, including real-time tracking of tumors that move with respiration."

The CyberKnife treatment team at Apollo Hospital consists of a trained team of highly experienced radiation oncologists, radiation therapists and a neurosurgeon. The team plans to focus on CyberKnife radiosurgery for lung, liver and prostate treatment as well as head, neck and spine treatments. Lung cancer is currently one of the leading cancer incidences and causes of death amongst men in India. (National Cancer Registry, ICMR-New Delhi)

"Since India is the second most populous nation in the world, we are excited that CyberKnife radiosurgery is now an option for its population and that the first patients have received treatment," said Eric P. Lindquist, senior vice president and chief marketing officer at Accuray. "We believe this is just the first step in the opening of a large market for the CyberKnife System, as illustrated by the momentum within this System's first week of use."

Advanced Medical Systems (headquartered in Singapore), the company responsible for placing the CyberKnife at Apollo Hospital, will assist in marketing and providing end user support for the new CyberKnife System through its Accuray trained team of engineers and applications specialists based in India.